In 2016, 914 people died of confirmed or suspected overdoses in this province, with fentanyl-detected deaths appearing to be largely responsible for the increase.

Here are some numbers to help digest the scope of the crisis:

1. The 914 total is by far the most overdose deaths in recent B.C. history.

According to the BC Coroners Service, that's a 326 per cent increase from the average over the previous 10 years, and rise more than 1,100 per cent from 1990, when there were just 80 overdose deaths for the entire province.

2. It isn't a one-year blip.

From 1999 to 2012, the number of deaths was never lower than 172, and never higher than 292.

But in the four years since, that figure has steadily risen, creating a clear month-by-month trend — and a dramatic rise over the last quarter of 2016.

3. The crisis is affecting every age group and region in the province.

While the previous profile of an overdose victim in B.C. was a middle-aged man on the Downtown Eastside, the opioid crisis has not discriminated by age or location, though it still overwhelmingly affects men more than women.

Collectively, 914 people become a very visible block when measured against other population metrics in British Columbia. To take just one example, there are around 500 seats in an average section of Rogers Arena or BC Place.